Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1887-04-21
NEW YORK EVICTIONS.
TWENTY THOUSAND FAMILIES DIS
POSSESSED IN THE CITY IN 1886.

The Item of Rent Out of Proportion to
Poor Mans Income-what Becomes
of the Families?-Justiccs as Peace
maker1.
If the number of families in New York
which hire their rooms from month to
month be taken to be between 100, 900 and
175,00O, then over one-tenth of these fam
lilies have been turned out of their homes
during the year. The records of the eleven
district courts prove it, Four district
courts alone will show that they have
issued some 10000 dispossess summonses,
each one of which was notice to family
to pay up or go.
To say that there were some 20, 600 fam
lilies driven out of their homes last year
carries only part of the meaning. The
average number of persons in those poor
families is greater than in rich or well-to-
do families. 1t is fair estimate to say
that in those 10000 families there were
40, men, women and children, most
of whom were unable to earn u sufficient
living. The item of rent was great one
with them, out of proportion TO what it is
to man with moderate income. A
laborer earning 81 day, or S2G a month,
has to pay from $3.50 to $40 rent, or over
q third of his income, while working
man who gets $3.50 day will not pay
over S18 month rent. With majority
of those 20,0 900 families the rent was more
than they could bear and they succumbed
The head of the family may have been
sick, on spree or out of work. The
family could economize in food, fuel and
clothing, but they lived in the cheapest
tenements already and the rent forced
them out 1t is a puzzle where they 60.
UNDER THE LAW.
The dispossess proceedings in the courts
do not by any means give the full number
OF families who are forced from their
homes by various reasons. Under the law
the landlord must give notice to their ten
ants first, and thousands of tenants, know
ing that to disregard the notice will only
bring forcible eviction, sell or cast away
their furniture, and wander out into the
city at once. On the money obtained
from the sale Of their furniture they may
live while, and then nobody notices how
they are swallowed up.
OF course there is another side to it
few cases, and there are professional rent
evaders, who take advantages of the tech
nicalities of the law, the leniency of the
justices to the poor and the multitude of
worthy cases, to escape paying rent when
they could if they would. When tenant
hires from month to month he can hold
over for another month if not notified to
go five days before the first day of the
next month. Otherwise he can hold on,
and if he rents by the year he can hold on
for another year. Or if he is behind in his
rent he can make the landlord prove
ownership, previous notice, specific con-
tract and violation of it before he can be
forcibly elected. 1t is not easy for the
landlord to do all this if the tenant chooses
to fight.
Notwithstanding the general impression,
drunkenness and shiftlessness in themselves
are not the immediate cause of many evic-
tions. A mans drunkenness may cause
him to lose his place, and then, without
work, he has no income, but as long as he
works his wife usually manages to get
enough of his pay to pay the rent. Lack
of work and sickness or death in the family
are the main causes Of falling behind in
the rent. The family get SO far behind in
pay up, and they are evicted, sell all they
can of their furniture, and start over again
in q new neighborhood. If the father gets
work then and is in good health he may
regain home. If he doesn't, his family
breaks up, and he may become tramp, a
criminal or pauper.
JUSTICES AS PEACEMAKERs.
AS rule, the civil justices try to act as
peacemakers between the landlord and
tenant. Where the tenant is able to pay
they usually succeed. In all cases they
give the tenant time, and try to prevent
forcible election by the marshals In not
over quarter of the cases is it necessary to
call in the assistance of marshal to get
the tenant out. Attached to several of the
district courts is charitable organization.
In extreme cases the justices and clerks at
the court chip in to pay the rent.
Several of the justices talked about their
experiences with eviction cases. They are
much alike. The following from Justice
Mccarthy speaks for the other east side
districts:
''There were some 1850 dispossess pro-
ceedings in the Fifth district court this
year. In not over q third of them was
forcible action taken. In the others the
tenants moved as soon as they saw it was
inevitable. Three-quarters of the cases
were tor arrears in rent. The others were
where the landlord had given the tenant
notice to leave at the end of the month
and the tenant had not left Some of the
cases are professionals. They come up
several times year. They would rather
move than pay rent, even though they are
able to. They get in arrears and hang on
till the last moment, when they pack up
and move.
"Most Of the cases are Irishmen and
Jews. Native Americans are rarest and
Germans next Jews do not always 90
on summons, but they often fight the
case in court, and cause the landlord a lot
of trouble to prove his side. Jews are
good pay, but litigous. Many of them
have picked up good knowledge of the
law, and conduct their own cases admir-
ably. l do not know where the evicted
tenants 80, but probably to cheaper quar-
ters. We look after all that we can, and
often we raise the money among ourselves
to pay the rent. Sometimes we are i'm
posed on, too. New York Sun,